The Role of the Dot in Handwriting Computation: A Cognitive Linguistic Perspective on Arabic Handwriting Recognition

Abstract

Arabic handwriting has faced several challenges throughout its historical journey. First, its morphological problems were overcome through ‘Abu l-‘Aswad’s endeavors. Then, with the efforts of Nasr bin ‘āsim and Yahya bin Ya‘mur, the closure of its graphic sign system was addressed fulfilling its linguistic functions. Next, through the reforms of ’Al- farāhīdī its coding was completed. In addition to these achievements that resolved the phonological and semantic issues in developing the graphemes of the handwriting system, Ibn Muqla introduced a new challenge on the aesthetic aspect of the letter. By following strict rules that established the aesthetic proportions of each Arabic letter and its subordinate elements according to each type of font, the dot became a geographical unit of measurement. This approach was endorsed by those who came after him, such as ’Ibn ’Al-Bawwāb and Yāqūt ’al-Musta‘simī. However, in the modern era, Arabic handwriting presents us with a new challenge, as it has become an integral part of the electronic, digital, and computer communication structures, and solutions for the automatic recognition of Arabic graphemes. Despite the existing efforts in many laboratories and research institutions, the subject raises problems such as the formation of Arabic letters, their design and construction, the capabilities of automatic recognition, and the need for faster letters readability.